Jiu Jitsu love

The wedding photography of Michelle and Karl. It takes a very special someone who enters a sport only a few years ago to then go on and become a national champion. That is precisely what Sydney girl Michelle Salva (Bradley) did. Now the world number four in her chosen sport of Jiu Jitsu.

Michelle and Karl are both mad keen Jiu Jitsu nuts. They live and breath the sport. Just the way they both speak so passionately about the martial art. Karl even proposed to Michelle on the fight mat in the Gym. Not your typical way to propose, but any other way just wouldn’t have seemed right

Their wedding took place at Gunners Barracks in Mosman Sydney.

Initially the weather looked promising. But as the ceremony time got closer and closer, the grey clouds started rolling in. The call was made to hold the ceremony under cover rather than out in the courtyard.

The wet weather didn’t dampen the spirits of Michelle and Karl. The were both so chilled and easy going. Michelle the outgoing bubbly personality contrasted with the quiet and thoughtful nature of Karl. Nothing was going to spoil their day. They knew that the most important thing is they were getting married and celebrating with their closest family and friends

Even though we could’t go to the locations around Gunners that we had intended going, we made the best of the situation. Besides, a wet wedding has its advantages. You can always carry an umbrella or do what Michelle and Karl did. That was to brave the wet a little and duck out for a few minutes to capture some images you just couldn’t get in dry weather. By directing the flash back towards the camera enables the rain drops to sparkle and create for some magical images. For most of the part we took the location shots under cover of Gunners Barracks.

With the advancement in camera technology we can shoot in almost complete night and still give the impression of being shot during the day. All the location shots were in almost complete darkness

The rain cleared briefly for the bridal waltz. This was held out in the courtyard. The puddles made for some spectacular reflections. A dance like another I have ever seen.

Michelle and Karls honeymoon plans had to be put on hold for a while as they had to fly out the next day for the world Jiu Jitsu championships.

Using the back flash technique really highlights the raindrops. The background was much darker to the naked eye than it shows in the image. That is how far camera technology has advanced.

Again the backlash technique helps highlight Michelle and Karl and at the same time helps illuminate the reflections in puddles in the foreground